The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 came into force on 26 October 2024 and introduces a new positive obligation on employers to take reasonable steps to prevent the sexual harassment of their employees in the course of their employment. So, what does this mean for the insurance industry?
What is changing? Hannah Ford, Partner, and Rachel Collins, Senior Associate at Stevens & Bolton LLP, take a look;
Sexual harassment consists of any unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature, where the intention or effect is to offend, humiliate, degrade, intimidate or create a hostile environment for another person.
Sexual harassment is already prohibited under current law, with employers being liable for harassment committed by their workers in the course of employment. Employers however have a statutory defence to a claim of sexual harassment if they can show that they had taken “all reasonable steps” to prevent this.
The new duty goes one step further, imposing a positive obligation on employers to take “reasonable steps” to prevent their staff from being sexually harassed in the first place. The Equality and Human Rights Commission technical guidance details that the preventative duty extends to preventing sexual harassment by third parties such as customers, suppliers and any other third parties an employee may come into contact with at work.
Where an employee brings a claim of sexual harassment and can show the employer has failed in the preventative duty, any compensation may be subject to an enhancement by up to 25%, however, there is not currently a stand-alone claim for breach of the preventative duty.
Notably, this duty does not just apply to conduct within the workplace and will extend to most settings relating to an employee’s employment. Firm-wide socials, large-scale networking events and international trips will all need to be considered.
What should insurers be doing?
The new duty requires employers to have a much more “hands-on” approach to tackling sexual harassment in the workplace, with employers being required to demonstrate the proactive measures they have implemented to protect employees from experiencing sexual harassment. Employers who fail to comply with this new duty face both reputational and financial risks.
Fortunately, there are ways in which insurance firms can protect themselves, and their employees, in the wake of this new duty.
Training
While it may seem obvious, having an effective anti-sexual harassment policy and holding regular and mandatory sexual harassment training for all staff will be essential. Training will need to be robust, ensuring staff understand what sexual harassment is and what they should do if they experience or witness harassment and the potential consequences of breaching the policy.
Specific training should be provided to management to ensure they are confident in spotting ‘red flags’ and how to best support staff. Training should also be tailored to the specific business environment of the employer, considering the types of events and clients the business typically hosts. Simply directing all new staff to a dated ‘Workplace Conduct Policy’ is unlikely to be sufficient.
Best practice is to hold training sessions on an annual basis, to ensure staff receive regular refreshers on the firm’s code of conduct and policy on sexual harassment. Attendance records should also be taken so businesses can follow up to ensure that all staff have completed this training. Employers may also want to consider sending reminders to its employees on how to conduct themselves prior to attending events.
Risk assessments
Businesses should conduct thorough risk assessments of the sexual harassment risks posed by day-to-day working as well as by any work-related events that employees are due to attend. This includes both events held by a firm and those organised by third parties.
It is no secret that the presence of alcohol at events can impair judgement. Insurance businesses may therefore consider as part of the risk assessment whether it is appropriate at an event to host an open bar, or maybe even opt for an alternative occasion instead, such as a breakfast or brunch event.
Given the extended duty to prevent sexual harassment by third parties, risk assessments should extend to including a review of attendee and supplier lists for example, at networking functions. Risk assessments should also consider how employees will get home after an event.
When staff are travelling on international business, specific risk assessments should be undertaken to ensure that employees are aware of how to conduct themselves when representing the business on an international stage, particularly when considering the cultural and societal norms of the host country.
Dealing with Complaints
Unfortunately, not every instance of sexual harassment will be preventable.
Where harassment occurs, employees should feel comfortable in raising complaints. Insurance firms should encourage staff to raise complaints by having clear reporting lines and a strong zero-tolerance policy against victim shaming. When complaints are raised, they should be taken seriously and be thoroughly and promptly investigated.
Where sexual harassment is identified, appropriate disciplinary action should be taken against perpetrators and enforced consistently amongst all staff, regardless of seniority.
The duty to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment undoubtedly places a substantial burden on employers to enforce the behaviour of not only its own employees, but also third-party customers. However, employers who are taking proactive steps to take preventative action and continually evaluating their culture to ensure staff are adequately safeguarded will be well positioned to comply with the obligations introduced by The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023.
Be the first to comment